Memories
by cherylwoo
Summary: Yao has been suppressed by a powerful memory and could remain unconscious forever. What will Arthur do to save the man he loves? This fic is in the same universe as my previous fic, "Immortal". England/China, America


A/N: This fic is in the same universe as my previous fic, "Immortal", and I guess could be seen as a sequel to it. I felt it was too short, and a lot more could be explored with that universe. It would be recommended that you read my previous fic to get an idea of who the characters are and what their circumstances are, but it's not entirely necessary. Once again, unbeta-ed, but don't let that deter you from reading!

Arthur was having a good day. He was full from a good meal, he had a relatively productive day, he didn't have to go to work (that was the most important thing, in his opinion) and now he was going home to spend a quiet evening with his lover. That was, if there were no beasts trying to attack his boyfriend.

Arthur hummed a little tune to himself as he unlocked the door to his apartment.

However, when the door swung open, darkness greeted him.

"Yao?" Arthur called out, a little unsure of himself. He reached for the switch and turned on the lights.

Everything looked to be in order. The living room was neatly arranged, and there was no mess in the kitchen or the dining hall.

"Yao?" Arthur tried again. Strange. Usually Yao would be there to greet him when he came home.

Arthur made his way to his bedroom, scratching his head. As he opened the door, he found a figure lying on the ground in a dark corner of the room.

"Yao!" Arthur cried, rushing to the unconscious man. He knelt down and cradled Yao's head in his lap. "Hey, wake up!" he gently shook the Asian man.

But there was no response.

In a panic, Arthur quickly carried Yao to the bed and gently laid him down. His first instinct was to dial Alfred's number. Alfred, a policeman, was his best friend, and the one person who knew about Yao's Sanjiyan and Arthur's 无 statuses. Arthur hoped Alfred wasn't on duty…

"Hello?"

"Alfred? Hey, I need your help!"

Alfred sighed. "Don't tell me there's another Nabau trying to capture Yao…"

Arthur grimaced at that memory. The Nabau was a snake-like creature that had attempted to take Yao's life by possessing Arthur… but that was a different story. "No!" he shouted into the phone. "Listen – I was out all day, and when I got home, I found Yao lying unconscious in the bedroom. I think something's wrong!"

"Maybe he had another Sanjiyan awakening, and just fell unconscious as the Sanjiyan was going back to sleep?"

"No," Arthur shook his head. "The aura's different – I can tell."

Alfred breathed out loudly. "Alright, I'll be right there." Then he hung up.

As Arthur put down the phone, he slumped onto the side of the bed. It looked as if he couldn't have his quiet evening like he wanted. What more, he was still new to this Sanjiyan business and now Yao was in this state.

Arthur glanced at Yao, who was currently oblivious to everything that was happening around him. He looked so… serene.

Arthur decided to change out of his clothes into something more comfortable while waiting for Alfred. He had pulled on a pair of track pants and a T-shirt when the doorbell rang.

Quickly, Arthur opened the door. As expected, it was Alfred. He was clutching a thick book he had obtained when Arthur told him about the whole Sanjiyan business.

"Oh good, you're here," sighed Arthur in relief. He showed Alfred to the dining hall where they could sit down.

"You know, I was flipping through this book on my way here, and it doesn't say anything about unconscious Sanjiyan… or what Yao might be going through right now." Alfred frowned at Arthur.

"You sure?" Arthur took the book from Alfred and began flipping through it.

"I'm positive," Alfred confirmed. "If you're sure there's something wrong with Yao, then I think you have to take it to your father's friend… what's his name again?"

"You mean Ludwig?"

"Yeah, him," said Alfred, nodding enthusiastically.

"But…" Arthur began uncertainly. "He doesn't know about Yao being a Sanjiyan…"

"Well, I guess it's time to let the cat out of the bag," Alfred shrugged.

"I thought we didn't want too many people knowing about it?" Arthur countered.

"Look, we need his help," Alfred pointed out. "And besides, he's your father's friend, right? I think we should be able to trust him."

The next day, Arthur made a phone call to Feliks to ask if he could have the day off. Thankfully, Feliks agreed without asking too many questions.

So, Arthur and Alfred were seen ringing the doorbell of an old-looking mansion.

Moments later, the door was answered by a young maid. "May I help you, sirs?"

"Uh, hi," Arthur greeted. "I am Arthur and this is Alfred. We are here to see Mr. Beilschmidt."

The maid smiled at them warmly. "And is he expecting you?"

"I… I don't think so," Arthur replied nervously.

"Just wait here," the maid told them. "I'll inform him of your presence, but seeing as he currently has no appointments, I don't see why he won't meet you," she said, smiling.

"Thank you," Arthur breathed. He glanced at Alfred, who was fidgeting nervously. "Why are you so restless?"

"I didn't know he was so rich!" Alfred whispered.

"Well, he is," Arthur replied off-handedly.

After a short while, the maid reappeared. "Mr. Beilschmidt will see you now," she said.

Arthur nodded at Alfred and stepped into the mansion. They followed the maid as she led them into the garden, where Ludwig was seated, enjoying a cup of coffee.

"Arthur!" Ludwig greeted as he looked up at the young man.

"Hi, Ludwig," Arthur replied, extending his hand to be shaken. "This is my friend, Alfred."

"Nice to meet you, my boy," Ludwig smiled warmly at Alfred and shook his extended hand. "Take a seat."

The two young men did as they were told.

"Now what brings you here today?" Ludwig looked at Arthur and Alfred with interest.

"Well…" Arthur glanced at Alfred, who gestured for him to go on. "Remember that time when I met you in the library and asked you about the Sanjiyan Unkara?"

Ludwig nodded. "Yes, I do. I had wondered why you'd taken interest in a mythical tribe whose existence have yet to be proven."

"Here's why." Arthur removed the headband he was wearing to reveal the 无 symbol on his forehead.

If Ludwig was shocked, he didn't show it. "Ah," he simply said. "That explains a lot, actually. Where is the Sanjiyan?"

"That's what we came here for, actually," Arthur began. "Yesterday, I found him unconscious when I came home from work. At first I thought it was a normal occurrence when his Sanjiyan side waking up and then falling asleep again, but the aura felt different."

Alfred nodded. "He's also been so still – it's as if he's in a coma!" he interjected.

Ludwig looked thoughtful. "I would say that Sanjiyan sleep is perfectly normal, but judging from your description, this is anything but normal. Allow me to see him."

Arthur glanced at Alfred, and nodded.

When they got to Arthur's apartment, Arthur showed Ludwig into the bedroom where Yao lay. He then exited so as not to disturb Ludwig, and began pacing nervously outside the bedroom.

"Will you stop that already?" Alfred complained. He was sitting on the couch in the living room.

"I can't help it!" Arthur retorted. "What if there's something wrong with Yao?"

"Well," Alfred began jokingly. "As long as he's alive, you're alive… and you're not dead yet, so…"

"That's not what I meant, you moron!" Arthur growled.

Alfred chuckled and raised his hands in mock-surrender. "I know, I know! Just trying to lighten up the mood!"

Arthur didn't say anything in reply to that.

As soon as Ludwig exited the bedroom, Arthur made his way towards him, expectantly. "Well?"

"He has been sealed by a powerful memory," reported Ludwig solemnly. "If this continues, he'll never wake up."

Arthur dropped to his knees.

Alfred was shocked too. He had no idea that the problem was so serious. "So… so how do we unseal the Sanjiyan?"

Ludwig looked pensive. "I can perform a ritual to bring the two of you into the Sanjiyan's memories, and you two can try to bring him out of it."

Alfred looked sideways towards Arthur. He was in no shape to make any decisions at the moment. "We'll do it," Alfred affirmed. "I'm the hero after all – I must do something to save the damsel in distress!" he jokingly added.

"Okay, get into the bedroom. We need to hurry," Ludwig told the two men.

Arthur got up quickly and allowed Alfred to lead him to the bedroom.

"Both of you, stand beside the bed. One of you on each side," Ludwig commanded.

Arthur and Alfred did as they were told.

Ludwig pulled out a piece of string from his bag. He gave one end to Arthur and the other end to Alfred. "Close your eyes. Ready?"

Alfred nodded. Arthur grunted in affirmation.

Ludwig chanted some words in a foreign language, and soon, Arthur could not feel the room around him. He was floating, and when he hit a hard surface, he knew he was at his destination.

Arthur opened his eyes. He was on the ground facing a building with ancient architecture. By the looks of it, it looked like this was where Yao lived 300 years ago.

He looked at Alfred, who was sitting up, groaning and rubbing the side of his head.

"You okay?" Arthur asked Alfred.

"Yeah," Alfred replied as he stood up.

"Let's go look for Yao," Arthur said with determination.

Alfred glanced around. "I don't think that's necessary," he chuckled. "Look!" he pointed behind Arthur.

Arthur turned around to see a little boy that looked like Yao rolling down a small hill. It looked like he had tripped and fell. As he landed on the ground, he gave a loud cry; he had scraped his knee. A small panda followed after him, whining in concern. Arthur suspected it was a young Xiong.

Arthur started to make his way to help Yao, but the little boy placed his hand on his knee and a glow appeared. When he removed his hand, the wound had healed. Yao sniffed, patted the panda on the head and got up, making his way uphill again. Xiong followed him.

"Aw, he's so cute!" Alfred cooed jokingly in Arthur's ear.

"Shut up!" Arthur snapped.

"I wonder where he's going, though," said Alfred pointing in the direction Yao had gone.

"I think we should follow him," suggested Arthur. He broke into a run to catch up with Yao.

"Hey, wait up!" called Alfred as he, too, ran to catch up with Arthur.

They reached a lonely fort. Yao looked around, and when he saw no one, he entered the fort.

Slinking in a corner, Arthur and Alfred followed suit.

In the centre of the fort lay a beautiful woman, who bore a striking resemblance to Yao. She was encased in a sort of crystal.

Yao approached the woman cautiously. "Mama…" he whispered.

But the woman did not stir.

"Mama…" Yao repeated. He was tearing up. Yao balled his fists and hit them on the crystal. "Mama, please wake up."

Xiong moaned in distress at seeing his master's sadness.

A three-eyed elderly man appeared from the shadows. "You know she won't wake, Yao," he said gently.

Yao sniffed. He seemed to know that but wanted to try his luck anyway. "Uncle Li," he begged, turning his tearful three-eyed gaze towards the old man. "Please make Mama wake up."

"You know I can't, Yao. What Kaiyanwang says is law."

"But…"

"Come, Yao," Li took the little boy's hand. "Why don't we have some tea? We can talk then."

Yao seemed reluctant to leave his mother. He glanced hesitantly at her unconscious form before he sighed and picked Xiong up, hugging the tiny bear. He then followed Li out.

As they watched the retreating figures, Arthur and Alfred looked at one another curiously. "I wonder what happened…" murmured Arthur.

"Should we follow them?" asked Alfred.

"Nah, I think he's in good hands. That Chinese guy looked nice," Arthur replied.

However, when they turned around to leave, they found the blade of a sword pointed directly at them.

"Whoa, whoa!" said Alfred, as both he and Arthur lifted their hands in surrender.

The yielder of the sword, a petite woman, glared fiercely at them. "You are not from around here," she observed. "State your business."

"Uh…" Arthur glanced nervously at Alfred. "If we told you the truth, you wouldn't believe us."

"Try me," the woman said. There was a hint of venom in her voice.

"Um… I'm Arthur, and this is Alfred," said Arthur, gesturing towards Alfred when he said his name. Alfred gave a friendly wave. "Basically, your reality has happened in the past. We are humans from the future who have entered Yao's memories because somehow, he has been sealed by a strong memory." Arthur didn't even know if he made any sense!

"Yao?" the woman asked with a frown. "You mean Ching's son?"

"Ching?" Arthur asked at the same time Alfred asked, "Who's Ching?"

"Ching is my Sanjiyan," the woman said, showing the 无 symbol on her forehead. "She's the woman who is lying there, dead to the world," she explained, pointing to the area where Yao's mother lay.

"Oh, then yes, he is Ching's son," Alfred replied.

The woman lowered her sword. "I have no idea what you mean by what you just said," she told Arthur. "But you don't look suspicious to me. Besides, you are a 无 too, aren't you?" she said, indicating the 无 symbol on Arthur's forehead. "I am Ming. I lead the rebellion against Kaiyanwang." She held out her hand to be shaken.

Arthur shook her hand, followed by Alfred. "Would you mind telling me what's going on around here?" Arthur asked.

Ming looked around suspiciously. "It's better not to talk here," she told Arthur. "Let's go to our hideout. I will explain there."

The rebellion's hideout was quite unique – an old building that looked to be abandoned on the outside was used. However, when Ming muttered a few words in Chinese, Arthur and Alfred were allowed entrance, and the building didn't look so abandoned anymore.

Ming led the two men in. "These are most of the members of the rebellion," she told them as they walked past groups of people involved in various activities. There was a group throwing darts at a picture of a good-looking man; they seemed to be enjoying it.

Ming brought Arthur and Alfred into a room and gestured for them to sit down.

Once he was seated and the door was firmly shut, Arthur asked, "What is the rebellion about?"

Ming looked at him. "Well, it's a rebellion against Kaiyanwang, our ruler. He used to be a kind and just ruler, but recently he has become very power hungry. He has ordered various Sanjiyan to undergo the humanification ritual, with him as the initiator, of course. And as the initiator, he absorbs their powers, thus becoming more powerful as the other Sanjiyan become human. And Ching has been no exception to that," she finished sadly.

Realisation dawned upon Arthur. "So she sleeps there until her humanification ritual?"

Ming nodded. "Ching was very against it. Then, one day, Kaiyanwang captured her, very stealthily, I must add," she said angrily. "He knew that if she were conscious, she would actively go against him. So he placed her under a spell and now she sleeps, just awaiting her fate."

Both Arthur and Alfred were silent.

"Yao has been Kaiyanwang's student since he was born 70 years ago," Ming continued. "Kaiyanwang insisted that he teach Yao – I guess Kaiyanwang saw potential in him. But Yao couldn't accept the fact that his mother was to go through the humanification ritual, and how evil Kaiyanwang was getting. He doesn't know how the humanification ritual works, by the way," Ming added. "He began to abandon Kaiyanwang. He was devastated when he found his mother in the state she's currently in. I suspect, being his prized student, Kaiyanwang wants Yao back in his clutches."

"Whoa, Yao's 70 years old?" Alfred asked in astonishment, thinking back to the little boy who looked not a day older than six. "He looks… so young!"

"Well, don't you forget that Sanjiyan age at a different rate from mere humans," Ming told him with a small smile.

"So let me get this straight," said Arthur with a thoughtful look. "The rebellion aims to bring down Kaiyanwang, right? But what are you currently doing to bring him down?"

"Currently, we are trying to infiltrate the prisons that Kaiyanwang is keeping the Sanjiyan due to complete the humanification ritual. We aim to free them and help them flee to a different place. A different country, perhaps. It's not easy, though…" Ming replied. "Our next step is to hold a coup against Kaiyanwang."

"We don't mind helping you," Arthur told her. "But our first priority is to return Yao back to normal."

Ming chuckled. "Once again, I have no idea what you are talking about. But as you can see," she gestured outside the room. "We have more than enough workers, so if you would like to concentrate on your mission, please feel free to do so."

"Oh, you are too kind!" Alfred swooned. Arthur shot him a dirty look.

"Thank you very much," said Arthur.

If Kaiyanwang was determined to have Yao back in his hold, then it made sense to break into his home to find out his plans and what he was up to. Thankfully, there were not many guards guarding the side-gate, as Ming expected, and as per her instructions, Arthur and Alfred were able to sneak into Kaiyanwang's home with no problem.

On their way to the main building, Arthur and Alfred went past what looked like a fort which, by the sounds of various squealing coming from it, housed Kaiyanwang's concubines. Alfred shook his head in disdain. "I wonder what's happening in there to cause them to shriek like that."

They reached the main building and sneaked in.

Arthur's ears perked up when he heard whimpering. Cruel laughter followed it. "Do you hear that?" he asked Alfred.

"Yeah," Alfred nodded. "It sounds like it's coming from there." He pointed down a dark hallway.

They made their way down the hallway, and the sounds of whimpering got louder as they got closer to the source of the sound.

"I think it's coming from here," Alfred said when they reached an old-looking wooden door.

Arthur turned the doorknob and opened the door slightly. He peeked in.

What he saw made him see red. Little Yao was on the ground, bound and gagged, sobbing, as tears streamed down his face while two malicious-looking Sanjiyan loomed over him. They held whips, and looked to be taking turns whipping the poor boy.

"Should we stop now?" one of the Sanjiyan asked his partner.

"I don't know," the other Sanjiyan replied, sneering. "Kaiyanwang told us to break him, but it doesn't look like he's broken yet," he shrugged.

Yao gave a shaky, watery sob at their exchange.

Without thinking, Arthur burst in, completely surprising the two Sanjiyan. He punched one of them, as Alfred decked the other one, and both of them slumped to the ground in a faint.

Yao was surprised at the arrival of two foreign men. At first, he edged away from Arthur as he approached him.

Arthur comforted him. "Don't worry – I'm just going to untie you," he said softly.

Yao nodded hesitantly and allowed Arthur to touch him.

When Yao was free, he wiped his eyes with his sleeves that were too long for him, and looked around. He wasn't sure where to go now.

"Yao," Arthur said.

"How do you know my name, aru?" the terrified boy asked.

Arthur shook his head. "That's not important," he said. He put his sword in front of Yao's face, allowing Yao to see his own reflection from the blade. "You have to remember – who you are and where you're from. All this is over. It's just happening in your head!"

"I…" Yao glanced at his reflection. "I don't understand you, aru."

"This is the past," Arthur tried again. "This has already happened. You are in the future now!"

"I…" Yao's screwed his face into a distressed look. "I don't understand, aru! I don't remember! I can't remember, aru!"

Alfred growled in frustration. "We had better go, it looks like the security guards are sensing something wrong here!" he hissed.

Arthur hastily picked Yao up, and Yao gave an undignified squeak. "Put me down, aru!" he cried. "I can walk by myself!"

"Trust me, it's a lot faster this way," Arthur murmured into the little boy's ear.

Yao turned a bright red and wrapped his arms around Arthur's neck tightly.

They exited the room, and ran out through the other exit. They hurried through the garden towards the side-gate they entered from, and quietly exited.

Once they were out, Alfred said breathlessly, "I think we should go somewhere that will jog Yao's memories of you and the future."

"Where?" Arthur countered as he put Yao down on the ground. "In case you hadn't noticed – this is his past! I'm not even born yet!"

"Who are you?" Yao asked Arthur with wide-eyed innocence.

Arthur looked at the little boy. That's right! He hadn't told Yao his name! Maybe that would bring back some memories of him to Yao. "I'm Arthur. Does that name sound familiar to you?"

Yao shook his head. "We don't get many Westerners here, aru," he told Arthur. "You must be visiting!" he said excitedly.

Alfred looked at Arthur in distress. Even a mention of Arthur's name did not work.

"Yao," Arthur said to the little boy, as he knelt down so that he was at eye-level with Yao. "Please, try to remember. Who I am. Who you are."

Yao looked thoughtful. "Who you are…?" he asked softly. "Who I am…?"

"Yao!" called a male voice.

Yao, Arthur and Alfred whipped their heads around to the source of that voice. Arthur recognised him as the man in the picture the rebels were throwing darts at.

"I knew I would find you here," the man said sweetly.

Yao took a step back. "Kaiyanwang," he whispered. He was starting to shake in terror.

Kaiyanwang held out his hand. "Come, Yao."

Arthur glanced at Yao. His eyes were starting to glaze over and he seemed to be in a trance. It was then Arthur realised that Kaiyanwang must be hypnotising Yao.

Furiously, Arthur rushed onward and brought his sword forward, slicing through Kaiyanwang's outstretched hand. That action broke the contact between Kaiyanwang and Yao, and Yao managed to snap out of his daze.

Kaiyanwang narrowed his eyes at Arthur. With his other hand, he sent an explosion at Arthur and Arthur was flung back. He could feel himself disintegrating as he screamed in pain.

Yao looked on in horror at the scene that was unfolding before him. He knew that face… it was in the back of his mind… why couldn't he remember? That face had showered him with love, had protected him…

Finally, Yao said, "Arthur." That name, so familiar; one that he had murmured so many times just for the sake of it, in bed while he was being made love to… "Arthur!" he cried, reaching out towards Arthur. The memories of who he was and what time frame he was from were coming back now. In a flash, his third eye opened, and a blinding light surrounded him.

In the haze of pain, Arthur managed a triumphant smirk. "Come out, Kuan Yaa!" he commanded. Kuan Yaa was a beast Arthur had acquired from a merchant who was dealing in beast magic. After battling with the beast for three days and three nights, Arthur finally defeated him, and the beast began to show its allegiance to him.

At once, a lightning creature appeared. It headed towards Kaiyanwang and engulfed him in flames.

Then everything went black.

Arthur blearily opened his eyes. He came face to face with Ludwig. "I was wondering when you'd wake up," said Ludwig serenely.

"Yao!" Arthur scampered up and rushed to the still unconscious figure on the bed. "Why isn't he up yet?" he demanded.

On Yao's other side, Alfred was stirring.

"Shh, slowly…" Ludwig interjected, pointing at Yao. "Look."

A shadow of Kaiyanwang appeared from Yao's body.

"What the hell…?" Arthur gasped. Ludwig and a now awake Alfred moved back.

Yao slowly opened his eyes and sat up. "He's just a memory, aru," he mumbled.

"Come with me, Yao, and we can be one… forever…" the shadow said.

Arthur blanched. "Yao, I know how you feel, but…"

Yao held up a hand, effectively silencing Arthur. "I'm sorry Kaiyanwang, but giving up my life under these circumstances… is just too foolish, aru. I can't go with you. I respected you as a leader and a teacher, but what you have succumbed to… it's just too much, aru," he told the spirit before sending a blast towards it, and it crumbled.

Arthur held up his hands to shield himself from the blast. When he opened his eyes, he glanced at Yao, who looked utterly exhausted. "Yao…" he whispered.

Yao moved towards Arthur and placed himself in his arms. Arthur wrapped his arms around Yao. "You okay?"

Yao nodded silently. He closed his eyes and a stray tear escaped from it. "Just… give me some quiet time, aru," he muttered as he buried his face into Arthur's chest.

Arthur was silent. He briefly wondered where the Sanjiyan was at this time – the Sanjiyan seemed to always know what was happening to Yao. Was he within Yao, watching? Arthur then kissed Yao gently on the head, comforting him and letting him know that he would not be alone.


End file.
